Facebook has been officially cleared to start issuing stock for the Instagram acquisition.

A fairness hearing, the last hurdle for Facebook before it could move forward with its Instagram deal, concluded today with the expected approval, a Facebook spokesperson has confirmed.

No other details were released.

The Federal Trade Commission issued a statement last week that it had concluded its investigation. Today's fairness hearing allows Facebook to bypass federal registration, which can cost companies hundreds of thousands of dollars.

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The Instagram acquisition was once valued at $1 billion in cash and stock. With Facebook's stock price at $19 a share, half of what it was when the social network went public in May, the deal is now worth about $747.1 million.

There's been no word from Instagram about the hearing, but apparently the photo-sharing site's CEO, Kevin Systrom, testified as a witness.